JHayes Version of Scandal 2
by Julia Hayes
Summary: Reed returns from her horrific vacation only to find that there is more drama. It's Easton, though, so that's fairly predictable. She and the Billings Girls will do anything to keep the peace, and save the school.
1. NEXT ACT

**NEXT ACT**

I quickly grabbed the green apple and placed it on my tray as we inched forward in the breakfast line, and blinked to keep my eyes awake. I had not gone to sleep until two in the morning; my thoughts kept rushing through my head, making it remotely possible to fall asleep. I hadn't even finished my conversation with Josh last night, let alone let out a complete response. I completely regretted it, but then I realized it wasn't entirely my fault. I mean, I had just found out something very shocking after Josh had finished his first couple sentences. Why would Ivy steal my ID? I thought this whole, druggie, pshyconess was over.

Maybe not entirely over. After Ivy had helped me find out who our stalker was, I had realized learned I could trust her, only with a certain amount of precaution. I was the one who blamed her for Cheyenne's death and my stalkerazzi. She did have that death glare that made me super intimidated. And those threats about bringing Billings down?

Maybe Ivy Slade was capable of things beyond our minds.

And maybe...this was why people liked public school so much better. God, the drama. It was worse than the story line from Melrose Place.

"Reed?" I heard Ivy's voice ask from behind.

I flicked my head up and slowly turned around, trying to look as calm as possible. Yep, with the wide eyes and forced smile. "Yes?" I asked, making my face as normal as possible. What did she want this time? My bank account?

"Move forward," she urged, lifting her chin to show the giant gap between Diana and I.

I stepped behind Diana. "Oh."

"Are you going to tell me about that car accident last night?" she asked excitedly, grinning.

I looked down at her stomach. Where the fuck was that baby bump? Damn. We'd all have to wait at least three months until she gained a little weight on her skinny torso. I looked back up.

"No. I mean, yeah. Later," I blurted, nodding.

"Are you alright?" Ivy bleated a laugh. She looked at me as if I were high or something. I let the lunch lady load my bowl with cereal and grabbed a bottled water from the refridgerator. She walked with me as I walked to my usual table.

"I'm fine," I replied. I suddenly noticed she was eating small portions. Just a tiny croissant with a cup of coffee. Coffee? And wasn't she supposed to be pigging out like she was having a pity party?

"Ivy!" I said, taking the coffee from her hands and placing it elsewhere.

"Reed, what are you-" she protested.

"You can't have coffee when you're pregnant," I explained.

Come on. Duhhhh. I even knew this, and I didn't know anybody in my lifetime who was pregnant.

Ivy pouted. So juvenile. "Right. I totally forgot. Thanks!" she trilled, her face lighting up.

She sauntered off, and joined her friends at their table, laughing as somebody shared a joke. I examined her as I walked to my table. The real question was: Was she really pregnant? I mean, I've never heard her rush to the bathroom in Pemberly to vomit or whatever. I would know, I spent most my usual sleeping hours in the bathroom, looking at my breakouts. I joined Noelle and the others over at our table. Then, I realized Josh was sitting at his table with the Ketlar boys, biting into his powered donut as if he were tired. I picked up my tray and sat down next to him.

"Hi," I greeted, smiling.

He looked up. "Hey."

I noticed Sawyer slap hands with Hunter as he sat down across from him. I ignored him. "Sorry about last night. Something came up, and I was just completely thrown off."

"What happened?"

The thing about Josh...he could never be so damn angry with somebody? Always so concerned. It was impossible for him to be the ex-boyfriend you were pissed at.

"Uh...I trust you. You are not to repeat any words I will say," I whispered.

"Reed!" Sawyer said, waving with a smile.

I waved quickly.

"Alright. Shoot," Josh said.

"Okay, so I was hanging out with Ivy when everyone was at the party. Then Noelle called because of everything that happened...so I had to bail her. Obviously, I would have to show my ID. I couldn't find out, Susan was there, so everything was good. Anyway, I was looking for it. When you were talking to me last night, Ivy was coming out. I noticed something drop from her wallet. It was my ID."

There was a long pause before Josh's response. "Really?" he blurted.

I nodded. "I don't understand. Also, I'm starting to get this feeling she's not really pregnant..."

"Me too," Josh added. "She's obviously not getting the basics of pregnancy. I'm a guy and even I know it. She's not heading to the bathroom like, every three minutes. She's eating small portions of food. She did drugs. I don't know what to believe anymore."

"Wow," I breathed. "Hey, I'm really sorry about everything."

"Don't worry about it."

"I want to make it official, but...Sawyer kind of likes me," I whispered, making sure Sawyer wasn't eavesdropping or whatever. Not that he would. He was actually looking like he was fitting in. Hunter fist bumping him and all that.

Thought the kid was too conceited to remember Sawyer's name. Huh.

"Oh," Josh said, shuffling his feet.

"Just give me some time? I mean, honestly? I want to be with you. I just need to tell him the right words," I said. "We can keep up this sneaking around for-"

My eyes slide past Josh. Noelle looked angry. She waved me over urgently.

"Reed!" Get over here!" she mouthed.

I tilted my head.

Josh turned around. "Just go."

"Josh, we can wait. I can't-"

"Go," he said, smiling genuinely. "We'll talk later."

"Okay..." I said slowly. I stood up and walked over to the table.

"Reed! Do you think you can tell me how exactly you planned that fundraiser? I need all the deets!" Constance said. "This article is going to be amazing. The Dean will have no idea what's coming to him."

"Not now," I said firmly.

Constance looked taken aback, but kept quiet.

"What?" I demanded to Noelle.

"Remember the guy whose ass I planned to sue last night?" Noelle whisper-shouted.

"No," I said sarcastically.

"He's over there, and he's enrolling at Easton," Noelle said through her teeth.

"Where?" I asked, scanning the cafeteria. What was he, sitting with a random table?

"Don't look!" Noelle whispered. "He's right by the entrance."

I turned around and looked anyway. There he was, dressed in gray slacks and a white blouse, leaning against the door. Clearly different from last night's outfit. And he was smirking.

Right. At. Us.

I flung back to face Noelle. "The fuck is he doing here?" I snapped. I was pretty certain I was more scared than ever.

"For once, I don't know, but he looks like a shady character. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to ask what's on that boy's mind," Noelle explained, throwing her napkin down.

"I'm coming," I whispered.

"Your prerogrative," Noelle shrugged, walking over. She suddenly stopped in her tracks, making me bump right into her. I followed Noelle's gaze. Ivy was walking over towards him, and whispered.

"I said I'd get you the money," she whispered.

Both mine and Noelle's jaws dropped. Ivy looked around to see if anyone was curiously looking. Nobody was.

Except for me and Noelle. We had both just witnessed Ivy's next act.


	2. THE TRUTH

**THE TRUTH**

I couldn't find Noelle. I called her and texted her several times, and she had yet to respond. Giving up, I decided to investigate. Such a deja vu. I would find all the most sketchiest things about Daniel Kenton, the new guy, and spill it. I would do anything to kick that guy's ass out of this school.

To be honest, I had no idea how. I didn't have an idea where to start. I had no fucking idea. Maybe, if I was lucky, I could confront Ivy about all of this. Maybe I could get her to confess to using. That was highly impossible though. She would obviously deny. What if I had Noelle's help? She was friends with the ever-so-genius Ariana, and she was one of the most manipulative girls I knew.

I found myself storming over to Ivy's room, quickly knocking on the door. When she didn't answer, I opened it to find her practically binge drinking. She was obviously a hardcore drinker, because three empty beer bottles were sitting on her nightstand. She was working on the fourth one. However, she stopped immediately when she saw me. I noticed an empty box of pasteries sitting down on the floor, a spot of powder on the floor. Powdered donuts?

"Reed!" she blurted. Her jaw dropped so low it could have hit the floor. She placed the beer bottle on the desk and touched her hand to her mouth. "Oh my God," she whispered to herself.

I tossed my Hermes scarf down on the floor. It made me feel like it was cutting off my circulation. "What is going on?" I demanded.

"Can you close the door?" she asked, flicking her eyes to the door.

Okay, so she clearly wanted me to hear out her explanation. I turned around and closed the door. I turned around, seeing her placing something inside her handbag. I heard something shake in there.

I suddenly loved my alertness.

"What was that?" I immediately asked, looking at her bag.

"Nothing," she said, shrugging.

I grabbed her bag from the table.

"What are you doing?" she shrieked, her eyes wide. She straightened up her posture.

I fished around and finally found an orange bottle of pills. My hand shook as I held it. Why was I so shocked? I had suspected this for a while, now. Why did it seem like this something new? "What is this, Ivy?" I murmured quietly.

She still wouldn't make eye contact with me.

"You lied to me. You lied to everybody!" I ranted. "We all thought you were going to be clean with the help of rehab, but that clearly isn't happening. Why, Ivy? Why do you think it's okay to do this?"

"I-after I found out I was pregnant, I didn't know what to do. I don't want to go to rehab," she protested, smoothing back her black hair.

Finally, I snapped. "Ivy, admit it! You're not pregnant!" I shouted.

There was a long moment of silence.

Ivy rubbed her temples and flicked on her second lamp light. "You caught me. I'm not."

"Why would you do this? Do you realize what you put us through?" I snapped.

"I lied because I knew Josh was going to leave me. I knew he wouldn't leave me when I was shot, but what about when I was going to recover? What would happen then?" she explained, her eyes desperate. I sat down on her bed. "So, I told him I was pregnant. I was with him at the time, and obvious assumption would mean Josh being the father, not Gage. Josh began to suspect he wasn't the father. We didn't even go far. I told him Gage was the father so I would have backup. That if Josh left me, Gage would be there for me."

"You used him?" I asked flatly. "It's a classic."

"Reed, I want to be in a relationship! Josh was the only one who truly loved me. Then everything happened, I mean for God's sake, he jumped in front of a gun to save you! I just wanted to keep us together. Maybe, if you can stay beside me. Motivate me to stop. I'll go to rehab. I'll stop."

Her eyes pleaded. Her voice cracked. She blinked back her tears and looked up at the ceiling. "Please, I really need your help. I want to pay Daniel back. I have the money. I just...what if he changes his mind? What if he decides to hurt me? You said you'd help me through this, Reed. Please."

I stared at Ivy. This girl changed so much since my departure to St. Barth's. What happened to that smart, vulnerable yet composed girl that I knew? She was an addict now. There was no stopping for a while.

I shook my head and threw the bottle down at her bed. "You're in this by yourself," I said. I walked out of the room and slammed the door shut. I stood there and thought, but I was completely distracted. All I heard were her muffled cries.

I speed-walked through the hallway and skimmed around for Daniel. Twenty minutes before classes started, and I still couldn't find him.

Five minutes later, I saw him talking with Gage and Hunter, laughing. He was loading his books into his leather, messenger bag and smiled at Hunter. Boy was actually attractive. If only he wasn't a crazy drug-dealer or a horrible driver. I stormed over.

"You stay away from Ivy," I said through my teeth. "Stay away from everybody. In fact, you should leave this school."

"Reed, what are you doing?" Gage asked, looking at me like I had two heads.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Daniel said. He didn't look one bit nervous.

"Yes, you do. You are a liar. I will find a way to bring you down. You're not here because of school. I know why you're here, and I will tell the Dean what the truth is."

Daniel shoved me, making me bump into a freshman. Okay, this kid had serous anger management issues.

"Did you just-"

"Don't push her, man," Gage said, shoving him back.

Gage, being protective? Really? Okay, back to the point.

"Sorry," Daniel said, tugging on his messenger strap.

I glared at him. "You won't get away with this."

Daniel scoffed. "Reed Brennan, you're accusing me of something that I never did."

"Drug-dealing? I think it's safe for me to say that's the perfect accusation," I said, narrowing my eyes. I adjusted my scarf on my neck. "Step up to the plate, or I'll tell the Dean. I have evidence. Whatever you plan to do, don't bother."


	3. BALLS

**BALLS**

The library was quiet. Easton was known for its actual, quiet library. Back in Croton, the employees rarely cared if you were being loud, playing hide-and-seek around the bookshelves and flying paper airplanes. Here at Easton, the students actually worked. Instead of using the laptops to go on social networks, they actually did research and typed their papers. I found that completely, and absolutely abnormal. I was looking through the books for my most recent History paper, when, suddenly, I saw Daniel. He was sitting by himself at one of the smaller tables by the window, talking on his cell phone.

With who, his drug supplier? His papers and books were laid in front of him.

"Mom? Wait, can you hear me?" he asked. "Shit, there's no signal. Hold on one sec."

I pretended to be interested in the encyclopedia as Daniel walked outside. He didn't even see me. Oh my God. His bag. It was still here. How long would he be talking on the phone? Maybe I could find something incriminating so I could tell the dean. When the door slammed shut, I sat down at his table and rummaged through his messenger bag.

Somehow, I was reminded of when Noelle told me Josh was on perscription pills and I had to go through his bag to find his box of daily pills. What if some nosy Dreck boy suddenly appeared out of nowhere? This table was so isolated, though. I found his second cell phone. Perfect. Thomas had a second cell phone. One for the actual use, the other for drug stuff. I quickly checked his text messages. Damnit. There was nothing. I scrolled through his contacts. None of the names sounded familiar. My heart practically stopped beating for a good five seconds when I saw a certain name: Thomas Pearson. So they knew each other. Interesting.

I ignored the five seconds of pain and slipped the phone into my pocket. I continued to go through the bag, not finding anything suspicious. No pills, no wads of cash, nothing. Shit. Shit. Shit.

"Reed, what are you doing?" I heard a female voice ask behind me. Thank God. It was only Shane.

"Hey," I breathed. She shot me a questioning look. She looked at the bag and then back at me.

"I'm, um... looking for a tampon," I lied. Wow. Come on, I was an ex-Billings Girl. Looking for a tampon. Really, Reed? Really? I cursed myself for being such a dumbass. Shane actually bought it. I wasn't very surprised. "I have one, if you want..."

"Oh, uh, it's fine," I stammered, bracing myself for her response.

"Cool." She sauntered off, completely oblivious of my obviousness. She joined Diana and Sonal at a table. I let out a laugh. What a retard. In the midst of walking away from the table, Daniel called my name. Fuck. How could I not have seen him come back? The door was, like, in perfect view. And how did he know my name? What a creeper. When I ignored him and continued to walk, he grabbed my arm and flung me backwards.

This guy was freakin' abusive. One more touch and I'd kick him in the balls. Hard.

"Get your hands off me," I said firmly.

"What did you take?" he demanded through his teeth. He glared at me.

I smiled sweetly. "Nothing you should concern yourself with." His cell phone rang quietly in my pocket. Perfect. Yep, just ring right now.

I held my breath. What could I do? With my heart pounding, I sprinted out of the library, holding onto his cell phone as tight as possible. I played soccer and I was lead scorer the past season. I could definitely beat him to this. Daniel chased after me as he put on his hat. The guy was at least three feet away from me. I continued to sprint, praying that the dean was in his office. I was not going to wait. I would find the dean and close the fucking door to make sure Daniel wouldn't follow me. Seriously, he would probably beat me if he had the chance.

My cheeks froze. It was so cold outside. Love New England weather. A couple of students looked confused as they saw Daniel chasing after me.

"Move!" he shouted from behind, probably at some poor sophomore girl. Mr. Winslow was walking into the building, a coffee in his hand. Since I was finally inside, I began to speed-walk as fast as I could. Two minutes later, I made a turn into Dean Hathaway's office.

"Is he here?" I blurted to Mr. Lewis-Hanneman.

She looked up from her stack of papers, and tilted her head, gesturing to Dean Hathaway's office. She continued with her conversation on the phone. "Hello? Yes. We are looking at a variety of choices here..."

I walked inside. Daniel asked Mrs. Lewis-Hanneman, but she directed him to wait.

"Shit," he muttered under his breath.

I closed the door. Dean Hathaway looked up at me and smiled.

"What do we have here?" he asked.

"Mr. Hathaway," I said. Woah. Did I really just say that? "Daniel Kenton is a drug dealer," I whispered, knowing Daniel would listen in or something.

He leaned forward and folded his fingers together. "Alright. Would you like to support that?" he asked, lifting an eyebrow.

"This is his second cell phone. I found 'Thomas Pearson' in there, if you heard about him." I handed him the phone and swallowed back the pain.

"Yes, I have. Are you sure this is his drug-dealing phone?"

"Yeah, I am."

"As a dean, it is my duty to look into this. If I don't find anything, there will be consequences."

Yeah, because finding out about a drug dealer was like playing an easy game of I-Spy. Good one. More like Where's Waldo.

"Sure," I said dryly. "No offense, but it's not going to be easy. Trust me. But thank you."

I walked out of his office, noticing Daniel was gone. Thank God.

The classes were switching, everybody crowding the hallway. I managed to navigate through everybody to make it to the dining hall.

Josh was sitting with my friends, along with Gage, Graham, and Sawyer. As I approached, they all laughed at one of Gage's juvenile jokes.

"Dude, you're sick," Graham cackled, slapping Gage on the back.

I sat down across from Noelle. "Hi," I greeted.

"Where have you been all day?" she asked, running her fingers through her long, brown hair.

"Likewise. I called and texted you a couple times but you never answered. I've been here and there," I replied smoothly.

Noelle smirked. "My phone died and the charger won't work."

"How unfortunate," I said, pouting.

"Can I sit here?" I heard Daniel ask, his tray in hand. There was an empty seat next to me.

"Uh, somebody's already sitting there," I said quickly. "Sorry."

"Holy shit!" somebody screamed outside.

Everybody fell silent, flicking their heads up towards the door.

"Oh my God! Guys, come look!"

Everybody shot each other confused glances, but got up and went outside anyway. I hugged myself to keep warm, and my jaw dropped when I saw what the student was looking at. People gasped and Tiffany snapped thousands of pictures with her phone. Whoever dared to do this must have had balls to do this. Wouldn't they understand the consequences?

There was graffiti on Easton's brick wall, all in bright colors, saying, "Fuck you, suckers. Your reign ends now." Holy shit, indeed.


	4. PLAN

**PLAN**

The graffiti was insanely colorful. Commotion erupted as to who did it, and why they did it.

Honestly, my first suspect was Daniel Kenton. One, because the guy was a sketch. Two, because the night Noelle and I first met him, he was wearing baggy clothes. I couldn't help but think he came from the outer streets of New York City. Three, he didn't necessarily go here. Sure, he was enrolled as a student, but he obviously didn't come here to learn. He came here to get the money Ivy owed him.

FUCK YOU SUCKERS, YOUR REIGN ENDS NOW just popped out right at me.

"Who would do this?" Amberly demanded, her voice cracking.

...Was she about to cry?

Noelle tugged on her white, knit gloves and scoffed. "Graffiti? Is that really the way to express feelings? This is Easton Academy, not the Bronx. I thought only smart people went here."

"You guys, we need to go to the chapel. Meeting," the Twin Cities shouted over everybody, waving us in.

The chapel was cold, as usual. Everybody was seated, grim and quiet. Headmaster Hathaway stepped up to the podium and adjusted the microphone.

"Hello, students," Hathaway said. "You may have noticed the absolutely unnecessary 'painting' on the wall outside the cafeteria." Everybody murmured in agreement.

"Silence! To whomever did it, understand there will be dire consequences. I say no more. This results in five-hour community service, everyday from Monday to Friday. Also, you will be expelled."

My heart panged. Daniel would finally get what's coming to him. A few other students gasped, shocked at the consequence.

Hathaway banged his hand on the podium, an angry look coming upon his face. Noelle and I shot exchanged confused looks. Daniel was sitting in front of us, and his posture immediately stiffened. Good. Make him intimidated.

"This is high school! It is rather juvenile to paint graffiti on the wall! Such a stupid, immature action. All students will participate in the cleaning of this graffiti. I do not care if you did it or not, but I will find out. To make sure all of you participate, there will be a sign-in sheet, with your name, date, and time. If I fail to see anybody's name on here, it will result in a one-hour detention, no excuses."

Fuck. Okay. I was officially scared of Headmaster Hathaway.

"You have got to be kidding me. What a dick," I heard Vienna's voice blurt.

The entire chapel had been quiet, so I'm assuming the Headmaster heard. "Excuse me?" he snapped.

"Vienna!" London scolded loudly, scoffing.

Alright, so now he knew who it was. I hid a laugh behind my hand. Noelle rolled her eyes. Such the typical Twin Cities. Everyone was right. London was the stupid one.

"Vienna Clark, please see me after the meeting," Headmaster Hathaway directed.

A couple people laughed.

"Does anybody have any questions or comments?" he asked.

Nobody raised their hands or made a noise.

"Very well then, I will move onto my next point."

He had another? I hugged myself to keep warm.

"When you return to your classes today, there will be dogs."

Dogs? Like puppies?

"Police dogs," he confirmed.

What?! The commotion erupted once again, people shouting and yelling and stating things like "privacy" and such.

"Why?" someone snapped.

"There have been suspicions of a drug-dealer. I will say no more, but when you get to your lockers, do not be frightened when you see police at your locker. I have given the Chief keys to all of your lockers. You may leave."

I got out of my seat and waited to get into the line to leave the chapel.

"Crazy stuff, huh?" Noelle asked, widening her eyes.

I nodded in agreement. "Tell me about it."

As I walked to Pemberly in the dark, by myself, I couldn't help but feel paranoid. Like A) Ariana, B) Sabine C), Cheyenne, or D) Mrs. Ryan would pop out of nowhere and scare me.

I told myself to calm down and that they were all either in jail or dead. It was quiet outside, except for the students getting off the bus for the track team. I continued to walk until somebody grabbed my arm and pulled me off my track. I was about to scream when I noticed it was Josh.

"Okay, dude, you scared me," I breathed, exhaling with relief.

"Sorry," Josh said, stuffing his hands in his cordoroy pants.

"What's wrong?" I asked, concerned.

Josh smiled. "You know how Daniel is in Ketlar now?"

I nodded slowly, sensing something. "Yeah."

"I have a plan. And it's going to work."


	5. STEALTHY

**STEALTHY**

One hour later, it was pitch black outside, except for the lights lighting up the school campus, but most of them had died out. Headmaster Hathaway was walking out of Easton's main building, where the classes took place, closing the door. Before the door closed all the way, I stopped it with a tree branch I had found on the ground. I quickly stepped in and quietly shut the heavy door. The Headmaster was always the last one out of the building, so I was safe. I made a turn into his office and grabbed the key off his desk. This key would open any student locker in the building. How Josh knew where this key was, I had no idea, but he had mapped out Headmaster Hathaway's desk. I speed-walked to the lockers, opening Daniel's locker up. Gage had told me his locker number. 415.

My heart pounded with anxiety as I opened his locker. I had to be stealthy. I had been when I snuck into Hell Hall to steal a physics test for Ariana, which, in fact, she never needed.

Ah, that time I hazed for Billings. Those were the good days.

I grabbed Daniel's textbook and opened it, seeing a tiny hole in the pages, which happened to be glued together. So it was a fake textbook. It was the perfect place to hide drugs. There was a small hint of white powder. Gage smokes pot, so he gave me some of his to load Daniel's textbook with. I opened the small, plastic bag and shook it into the hole. Obviously, Daniel carried this book for supplying, not for the actual use. He obviously wouldn't look inside before he carred it. I quickly switched the cover with his math textbook's, which was legit, before putting both textbooks back onto the book rack.

I quickly typed up a message to Josh on my iPhone.

got it.

He texted back almost immediately.

great. the plan will be in session tomorrow. remind noelle. i got gage.

I put my hood on and quickly ran all the way to Pemberly. It was quiet. Nobody was in the parlor, so they must be in their rooms. I burst open the door to Pemberly, only to find Noelle sitting on her bed, reading a letter.

Upton's letter to me. I had told myself I would read it later, but I completely forgot about it.

"What are you doing?" I demanded, throwing my bag onto the floor.

She faced me, a disappointed look on her face. She passed me the letter, leaning back in her bed.

Reed Brennan, I am so sorry for what I have done to you. I lost my mind for a while at the party, and after I did it, I realized it was wrong. However, this long-distance relationship screw-up was definitely called for. I live all the way across the sea now. There is always the chance one of us would do something, and the other one would not find out. I took advantage of that. I would like to thank you. You changed me. Aside from a couple Fridays ago, I was a player, and you are the only girl I fell in love with. After what I did to you, you deserve better than me. We should part ways now, and leave the past behind us. Maybe I'll talk to you soon, but let's stay friends. Maybe I can see you next winter break at St. Barth's again. Finish high school and get a good education. Your future should not involve me.

Love,

Upton.

I smiled to myself. Boy was so sweet, even after a break-up. "Where did you find this?" I asked.

"A cleaning lady must have come in and placed this on my bed. I thought it was for me, but I guess not," Noelle replied, crossing her arms and shrugging.

"Wow," I said, my voice in a whisper.

I looked out the window, seeing that it was snowing. It was practically a blizzard out there.

"He really did love you. Let's just say I called it from the start," Noelle said with a confident smirk.

I laughed, shaking my head. "You're always right, I know."

Well, almost always.

Noelle smoothed back her long, brown hair and smiled. "So, what was it like putting drugs in somebody's textbook?"

I wrinkled my nose. "It's fantastic. I really enjoyed loading drugs," I said sarcastically.

"Well, hopefully this plan works. I don't want Daniel's ass out of here any more than we all do. Speaking of which, has he had any contact with Ivy lately?"

"Why would I know?"

"Because you two are totally buddy-buddy with each other. I wouldn't be surprised if you were helping her get the money to Kenton," Noelle explained, raising her eyebrows and smiling.

My heart literally skipped a beat. "You're not serious," I stated, irritated that she would think I would do such a thing.

Noelle shrugged. "Just stating a thought."

I let out a short laugh. "You've got to be kidding me! I don't even know what Ivy's up to, or what she's doing. Now, you're telling me that you think I'm some sort of accomplice? What kind of person are you?" I rambled.

Noelle rolled her brown eyes. "Calm down. I was just trying to have a little fun. I mean, after everything that's happening, I deserve a little fun, right?"

Well, that certainly wasn't going to help your case there, Noelle. I should have seen that one coming.

I pursed my lips together. "That wasn't funny."

Noelle laughed. "Please, it totally was. You bought it."

I changed into my flannel pants and sweatshirt, cuddling myself into my warm blankets.

"Reed, it's only 7:30," Noelle said incredulously.

"I don't care. I just want to go to sleep."

I quickly shut off the light by the table. I closed my eyes and drifted to sleep.


	6. PLAN IN ACTION

**PLAN IN ACTION**

Mr. Winslow allowed us to start on our work early. He was sitting at his desk, typing furiously on his Apple laptop. Classes were dismissed, so I strided over to my locker to unload my binders and books. I quickly checked my hair in the mirror, seeing Noelle doing her task. She stood by Gage, talking to him. Daniel arrived at his locker and smiled at the both of them.

Weird. He was normally a "I'm going to shut you out of my world" kind of guy.

I closed my locker and walked by them, never taking my eyes off. I stood in front of Mr. Barber's class and pretended to wait for somebody.

"Daniel, I left my textbook back at Pemberly. Can I borrow yours when I go to the library?" Noelle asked, getting all flirtacious with him.

Daniel didn't even bother to check which book he was handing her. I pressed my lips together to keep from laughing.

"Thanks. I'll have Gage give it back to you tonight."

Noelle and Gage sauntered off, Gage stretching his arms above his head as a signal that his task was complete. That meant that he got Daniels' locker combination, and he put the plastic bag full of pills while Noelle was "flirting" with Daniel. Suddenly, Josh appeared from a classroom, lifting a thumbs up. Suddenly, the sound of walkie talkies vibrated in my ears as two cops busted through the doors. With two, very, very, big German Shepards on red leashes, sniffing and barking.

This was not part of the plan, but alright.

I saw a couple students back away from the dogs, speed-walking into their classes. Now, this could make anybody look like a suspect.

"Oh my God, is that-"

"Hey!" The policeman shouted as he ran towards Daniel's locker.

So they knew him.

The policeman ordered Daniel to open his locker. Daniel did so, the dog sniffing out the drugs. The policeman took out the bag of pills. The hallway filled with students, everyone gasping in complete shock. Ivy came out, her hand flying to her mouth.

"There's nothing to see here. Everyone get back to class!" Headmaster Hathaway called, filing the students back into the classrooms.

Daniel's eyes widened when he saw the bag of pills. Suddenly, he sprinted down the hallway, making a left turn. Boy could be on the track team. The two policemen held up their guns and followed after him, the dogs sitting down on command.

"Hey! Everybody move!"

Why did I feel like we were in a school in the Bronx or something?

Finally, the policemen caught him, cuffing both Daniel's wrists together as he hung his head low.

"You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say will be held against you in the court of law."

"Daniel, don't forget to clean the graffiti!" Amberly cooed, waving him off.

That was the most inappropriate time to say that.

Daniel had to be quiet, so he said no more as they policemen shoved him into the car.

GOSSIP SESH

You'd think that with Easton, there were always new, different stories to share with all of your friends the moment you heard it. Well today, it was different. The only topic of gossip was the arrest of Daniel Kenton. A couple of students opened to the article in the Easton Chronicle, and somehow, the news got into the local newspaper. People pointed at the picture of Daniel in handcuffs, and Daniel testifying in court. How the parapazzi got hold of this, God only knew, but it was brilliant.

The cafeteria was buzzing with juicy gossip as I sat down across from Noelle, quickly opening my iced tea. Kiki bopped her head to her screeching guitar music as she stuck both iPod earphones into her ears. She popped her bubble and smiled at me. Noelle had yet to greet me. She seemed way too engaged in the Easton Chronicle. When she finished, she tossed it on the table. Constance arrived at the table, beaming. Her red curls practically bounced even as she stood still.

"Do you like it?" she asked excitedly. "I worked so hard. I couldn't help but think it was horrible, but then Whit gave me this cute pep talk and I'm one-hundred percent confident in my article!"

Noelle leaned forward. "Constance, this article is great - if writing a report. Like this is ever going to convince the Headmaster to bring Billings back. You can either re-write the article, or we try something else. I appreciate the effort though."

Constance flushed, looking down at her D&G sneakers.

"Noelle," I scolded.

"Sorry, Noelle can be blunt," Ariana's words repeated in my head. She had said that right after Noelle had made my nickname "glasslicker."

Yeah.

"What? Constance is the editor of the paper - she knows how to take criticism, right?" Noelle asked pointedly, lifting a perfect eyebrow.

Constance shrugged. "Uh, yeah," she answered weakly before sitting down with Kiki and Astrid on the other side of the table.

"Noelle," I said through my teeth.

"You're looking way too much into this. I have to go."

"But I-"

"Reed, don't act all sad. Read the article later and I can guarantee you'll see where I'm coming from. I have to go," Noelle said, pushing the newspaper towards me. She gulped down the rest of her coffee from the cup and left the cafeteria.

"Backwater Brennan, always there to save the day. You know, hazing really becomes a priority when you're trying to kick a guy's ass. Good work," Gage said, slapping me on the back.

Josh and Sawyer joined us, smiling at me. Josh gave me a quick high-five.

"Hey," I said to both of them, forcing a smile.

This was so so so awkward. I still had no idea what to do.

Suddenly, Gage looked eager to hear something. "You guys had a threesome, didn't you?" he asked.

He sounded like a seventh grade girl who was asking who her best friend's crush was.

"What?!" Josh, Sawyer, and I all blurted at the same time.

"I can tell. Everytime the three of you are near each other, things get awkward. I've noticed, okay?" Gage smoothed back his blond, gelled hair and smirked like he was oh-so right.

"What's it like being in a threesome? I get it if it's one guy and two girls, but two guys and one?" Gage asked.

So he's never been in a threesome before. Shocker. I thought he would be the first guy to be in one.

Josh opened his mouth to say something, but Gage cut him off.

"Dude, all this time I thought you were the pure one!"

Sawyer flushed. "We never-"

"Gage," Josh said lightly.

"Did you guys have a little rendez-vous in Ketlar?"

"Gage," I hissed.

"What?" He acted completely innocent.

"We never had a threesome," I explained quietly.

There was a long, pregnant pause.

Gage flicked his eyes to the left and right, avoiding eye contact with us. His ego was finally busted. I've never seen Gage embarassed before. Guess there's a first for everything. He clucked his tongue and stood up. "Prescott! First block Spanish, let's hit it!"

"Dude, you already lost all your mojo. The teacher's not interested," Trey said, getting his leather messenger bag.

"Are you insulting my manhood?" Gage snapped.

They continued to argue bromance style as they walked out of the cafeteria. While Josh was checking his messages on his phone, Sawyer faced me.

"Have you decided?" he asked.

"Look, uh, I'll talk to you about this later. Now's not the time," I replied, looking at Josh quickly.

Sawyer nodded in understandment. "Alright. Just call me tonight or something."

Sawyer left off with Hunter.

Josh sighed. "Reed, don't put this off for such a long time. I know you have Sawyer, but is making us wait really fair? Think about that."

So he left.

I got an invite from Amberly. Obviously so her spot in Billings would be guaranteed. That is, if it comes back.

"Now, this is my dress. Zac Posen. It's getting shipped from the newest collection in Europe, so nobody else can have it. At least, I hope not," Amberly shared with Portia and the Twin Cities, showing them the picture on her phone.

I shoved the invite in my Kelley bag, the gift Mr. Lange had given me on Christmas.

"Anyway, not a lot of people are invited, so this party will be sort of exclusive, you know? I am so excited. There will be-"

I tuned out Amberly's annoying voice and focused on my english reading book. The library was all quiet, except for Amberly. London yawned, and Vienna fell asleep. She was probably still hungover from last night's clubbing, which she did with a couple of inner city friends. Portia checked her nails. They obviously didn't care.

"Reed," Tiffany said to me, handing me her iTouch.

"What?"

"Press play."

It was a video on Youtube. I pressed play and stuck the headphones into my ears. It was Easton's back wall by the cafeteria. The girl had a tall, lean figure, with hair pulled up into a ponytail. She wore all black. She held a package of spray paint in her hand, placing it on the ground before checking to see if anyone was watching. She looked directly into the camera, but she probably didn't notice considering Easton's security cameras were hidden so well. I squinted my eyes at the person's face, pausing the video.

"Somebody leaked the security footage. It's all over Facebook, somebody tweeted about it, and now it's on Youtube," Tiffany explained.

I looked once more at the girl's face. So it wasn't Daniel who painted the graffiti. Blond hair. Blue eyes. Rocks the island. Posessive of her ex-boyfriend. Her family owns a chain of hotels all over exotic vacation areas. Look, everyone, it's Poppy Simon.


	7. WHO WILL MAKE THE CALL

**WHO WILL MAKE THE CALL**

"I tried Poppy's number several times, and it keeps going to voicemail. I even put my number on restricted," Noelle shared as she entered our room in Pemberly, tossing her Diane von Furstenburg bag onto her bed.  
I groaned and laid down on my bed, covering my face with my hands in stress. "Fuck," I muttered under my breath. "She's also ignoring my wall posts."  
Like she would answer them anyway.  
Amberly hugged her white cardigan closer to her body and shrugged. "Can't we knock on her door?"  
Noelle scoffed. "Amberly, you _clearly_ don't know who you're dealing with. The girl has seven different houses all over the world. We don't know where she is." She shut the door and sat back down again.  
Tiffany tugged on her Burberry scarf and her face lit up. She grinned excitedly, showing off a perfect set of white teeth. "Why don't we have Upton call her?"  
Noelle, Amberly, and I stared at her in bewilderment.  
"That's uh...interesting," I said, forcing myself to look like I accepted her idea.  
"Interesting? I believe the correct term is _retarded_," Noelle snapped, flicking her eyes at Tiffany.  
"Noelle, think about it. Poppy will answer because she'll think Upton wants to talk. We all know she's a sucker for Upton, so-"  
"Again, Tiffany, _retarded_. Once she finds out that's not the case, she'll hang up," Noelle interjected.  
Tiffany narrowed her eyes at Noelle. "I know you don't accept the idea, but you don't need to be such a damn bitch about it."  
My heart stopped pounding for a good three seconds. Amberly frantically looked at me, as if she was going to leap into my arms if Noelle was going to attack or whatever.  
I would drop her on the floor.  
Noelle seethed. "Then stop throwing in bad ideas."  
"It's not a bad idea. I'd like to see you come up with-"  
"Guys! This is really an inappropriate time. Let's just get our heads on straight," I demanded.  
Noelle smirked. "Look at you, all in charge," she teased. "What's next? An order from the Queen?"  
"I'm just trying to figure out why-"  
I stopped myself as Noelle sighed tiredly. Like she didn't want to do any of this.  
"She won't answer any of us. Paige and Sienna clearly won't do it," I said firmly, thinking hardcore. I finally came up with an idea. "Daniel. He loves Poppy, and-"  
"But does Poppy love him? Besides, Daniel is all about being protective. What makes you think he'll take _our_ side?" Amberly suggested, actually sounding logic for once.  
We actually considered this.  
Kiran Hayes obviously wouldn't do it. She was known for being shallow, and she probably did not give a shit about this. Would Taylor Bell do it? She was totally sweet and would do anything for us. Not to mention she and Poppy never crossed lines with each other, so there was clearly no love lost between the two.  
"Taylor," I said with a nod.  
Tiffany rolled her eyes. "Really, Reed? Taylor? She's on our side," she explained.  
I held up my hands in defense.  
"Why would Poppy listen to her? She has something against our St. Barth's crew, and Taylor's part of it," she continued.  
Noelle let out a light laugh. "You're overthinking this."  
I grabbed a sweatshirt from my drawer and slipped my body through it. "Then what's your idea?" I asked through my teeth, becoming frustrated with Noelle's cocky attitude.  
"Dash. He didn't take anybody's side. Poppy had a major crush on him, what, like two years ago? And...as we all know, Dash will do anything for me." Noelle smirked, that familiar twinkle in her eye.  
Mmmhmm. He was all about pleasing his girl.  
Amberly put on her Tory Burch peacoat and opened the door to leave. "What if Dash doesn't do it?" she asked.  
"Oh, I have my ways."  
What? Like sleeping with him?  
I decided to keep that in my head. "Aren't you going to call him?"  
Noelle shook her head. "He's visiting this weekend anyway. I'll talk to him then."  
Tiffany sighed. "Finally. Talk to you guys later," she said in a pissed off voice. She followed Amberly out the door and slammed it shut.  
All this Billings-is-gone stuff is really making us fall apart. Like how Tiffany and Noelle just bitched at each other. And how Tiffany, who was usually so sweet and genuine, snapped at me after I offered my idea. It was funny how Amberly kind of stayed out of it. Maybe because she wasn't a _true_ Billings Girl. Of course, all of this was totally called for.

The weather was cold. I blew out cold air and stood outside the library beside Constance. She was bundled up in a warm coat, hiding her mouth behind her scarf. I saw Dash McCafferty in a black coat and Fendi gloves, leaning against his sleek car. Noelle greeted him with a tight hug. He smiled and leaned down to kiss her. I looked away.  
"What's he doing here?" Constance asked suspiciously, tugging on her gloves.  
I shrugged. "I...don't know."  
I did, however, know what Noelle was going to ask of him later.  
Constance shook her head, her red curls blowing away from her face. "Okay, so I'm going to get frostbite. I have no idea what you're doing here, but do you want to come with? The library seems pretty toasty. _Why_ are you even standing here?"  
"I uh..."  
What was I doing here again?  
"I'll be on the third floor," Constance said, holding up three fingers. She opened the door to library and went inside.  
"Dash!" I heard Gage shout from far away.  
About fourteen other Ketlar boys were running towards him, their scarves falling behind. What was this, the family reunion? They all took turns to hug Dash or slap hands with him. Noelle looked a little bit annoyed, but then she rolled her eyes with a smile, like, "...Boys."  
"Reed!" Trey shouted, waving me over. "Dash is here!"  
I lifted a thumb. "I see!"  
Noelle crossed her arms and looked at me. "Come here!" she mouthed.  
Okay, what was I going to do, stand here all day and purposely get pneumonia? A group hug of body-warmth would be nice.  
I jogged to all them, and Josh wrapped his arm around my neck along with several other of the guys. I wrapped my arm around Noelle and let her join in this group-hug. It felt so middle school. We finally broke apart, and I gave Dash a shy wave.  
Noelle. Dash. Me.  
Me. Dash. Legacy.  
Noelle never forgetting about it on the way to St. Barth's.  
Me telling Dash about Sabine's drugging.  
Noelle getting back with Dash.  
Life really does come a long way.  
"How's Yale?" I asked, shaking his hand.  
"Good," Dash said with a smile.  
His brown eyes were still warm, completely genuine. His blond hair was neatly gelled back. That male model. He was still so freakin' _hot_. Why did it still surprise me everytime I saw him? He looked older, obviously. In comparison to the Easton boys, he seemed like the Ketlar legend they all looked up to. Ketlar boys sometimes really needed to learn to mature.  
"What are you doing here?" I blurted.  
Dash wrapped his arm around Noelle's waist. "We're, uh, we're getting married."  
His face was completely serious.  
Noelle nodded with a happy-sad smile on her face. "We couldn't wait until he and I would _both_ get out of college. So, being together this way is the best idea."  
There was a long, silent pause. We all looked at each other awkwardly.  
Suddenly, everybody cracked up laughing. Noelle laughed too, like we were all so gullible.  
"Dude, don't do that again!" Gage said with a light shove.  
Dash smirked. "No, uh, I'm just here to visit you guys."  
"And you didn't bother to tell us?" Josh asked, taking off his gloves and handing them to me.  
I looked at him with confusion as my numb hands took them.  
"They look cold," he said quietly, refocusing his attention on Dash.  
When he wasn't looking, I smiled to myself. Such the gentlemen. He really did still care about me.  
"I thought I'd surprise you guys."  
Good thinking.  
Noelle smiled. "Alright, we all know each other. So, enough with the this bonding. I get to steal Dash from _all_ of you," she teased, placing her hand on Dash's chest.  
Trey held up a hand. "He's ours," he said in an authoritave tone, as if he were a cop and Dash was the suspect he was looking for.  
"Yeah, Dash can crash at our place. Now," Josh added, tilting his head towards Ketlar.  
Noelle smiled slowly. "Guess you'll have to fight me for him."  
All the guys groaned jokingly and complained. When Noelle and Dash walked past us, she winked at me.  
I knew what that meant. That she would be asking Dash to call Poppy anytime soon.

**OFFICIALLY DONE WITH **

Noelle was walking towards me with her tray. She wore very subtle make-up today, and her dark, brown hair fell in her natural waves. For once, she didn't straighten it. She stared straight forward, and she looked pissed off. She slammed her tray down on the table.  
"Somebody's PMS-ing," Portia commented with a scoff, tying her hair into a quick ponytail.  
Noelle rolled her eyes. "_Shut up_, Portia," she snapped.  
"What's up?" I asked, spearing a tomato with my fork.  
"Poppy is bullshitting us, that's what's up," she replied, glaring at back at the boys table.  
They seemed to be drawing a lot of attention to themselves. The Ketlar boys were were tossing popcorn into each others mouths.  
So mature.  
"Dash called Poppy last night. They had a three minute normal conversation, and then he switched the topic. She hung up," Noelle explained. "Could this new year get any worse? Talk about depressing. This is when Prozac can come into the picture without making you look like a pshyco."  
I exhaled, puffing out my cheeks. "Now what?"  
She shrugged hopelessly. "I don't know. What if we call her parents?"  
"Please. Poppy is spoiled. They wouldn't care," Tiffany interjected, standing up to quickly pull up her Miss Sixty jeans.  
Amberly eyed her jeans and rested her chin on her hands.  
_Woah_. Since when did a Billings Girl have to stand up for _that_?  
Oh, wait, we weren't Billings Girls anymore.  
"Yeah, but we like, personally know Mr. Hathaway. Obviously, it would be different if they had an adult-on-adult conversation," Amberly suggested, brushing her blond hair with her fingers.  
I thought about this. It was a possibility that the adults would find a way to work this out. Maybe Mr. Hathaway already knew about this. Duh, he's the Dean. But then, he was good friends with Poppy's parents.  
Noelle pressed her hands to her eyes. "I honestly don't care anymore."  
My eyes widened. "Noelle - have to do something. Poppy cannot get away with this!" I protested angrily.  
Amberly sipped her coffee and rolled her eyes. "I have to go. Visiting my parents in Boston. Bye!" She grabbed her Balenciaga bag and sauntered off.  
Noelle and Tiffany shifted positions in their chairs.  
"What do you mean you don't care anymore?" Tiffany asked Noelle incredulously, pulling her dark hair over her shoulder.  
Noelle smiled confidently. "Meeting in the library at two? Tell any Billings Girl you see."  
She slipped her arms through her Tory Burch black trench, grabbed her tote, and walked out of the cafeteria.  
Tiffany and I exchanged a look of confusion, and proceeded to eat our breakfasts. This just got interesting.

All fourteen of the Billings Girls were seated in a private, conference room in the library. The room was on the top level, so I had to take a long elevator ride just to get there. The room was reserved just for us. Everybody whispered, coming up with theories for this called meeting. I sat down at the end of the long, oak table. Right across from Noelle.  
"Alright, if I could silence, please?" Noelle announced, folding her hands on the table.  
The room fell silent. Constance looked like she was lining up for an intense roller coaster ride.  
"So, I'm sure we've all heard about suspect numero uno for the graffiti. We all thought it was the infamous Daniel Kenton, when it turned out to be a girl named Poppy Simon. And...as we all know, it is highly impossible to contact her. Look, I understand the community service for cleaning the _entire wall _will be hell. We're Easton students. We don't do anything like that. But it won't hurt. We'll be earning credits for graduation. All I want to say is, I don't care anymore."  
Portia actually gasped. "WTF?"  
I was shocked. Here was the answer that was coming for Tiffany and I.  
Noelle suddenly lost her appearance of intimidation and confidence. She looked like any other normal student, not the Noelle Lange I knew. She smiled sadly. "This isn't some fairytale, ladies. It's life. And...life as we _all_ know it, sucks. It is so clear we won't contact Poppy anytime soon. What about Billings? Do you think it's _actually_ going to come back? Even if it does, the building won't have the same, traditional meaning as the true Billings. The one that was built years before we were all born. It would be like moving into a different house. Everything is so new, so different. You only consider your first house home. Another exclusive house on campus won't get us anywhere. Just admit it. We're no longer Billings Girls. We don't see other everyday. Everybody treats us the way they treat each other. We're no longer those girls in power. We are no longer those girls whom everybody fears, and feels the need to please. We are no longer the girls whose name everybody recognizes. I understand that this will be hard for a couple months. I'm sure they will try to make our lives hell; the way we treated them was how a Billings Girl was dawned powerful. I suggest that we accept that and get on with our lives. There is no more inner circle - no more legacy of sisterhood. There is no more place where we can unite in the middle of the night and hold special rituals the Headmaster always bitched about. No more place where we can vet girls and decide who lives in Billings. No more place where we can be there for each other and have amazing Fat Phoebe Parties and sneak off campus for getting drunk in the woods. No more place where we can get into a limo at the same time and whisk off campus for shopping..."  
Noelle's voice came to her whisper, and her voice cracked. She was about to cry. She blinked up at the ceiling. Everybody avoided eye contact with each other. The last time I saw Noelle like this was when she tried to explain the situation with Thomas in the woods. Before Ariana's confession. Tiffany was about to hold out her hand to comfort Noelle, but she didn't. Everybody was thinking about this. They were finally starting to get real. The Twin Cities held their heads low, Portia sniffed, and everybody else just looked sad.  
"No," I heard myself blurt.  
I shook my head as everyone fixed their attention on me. "We can't let this happen. Nobody can take things away from us."  
"They just did," Astrid murmured quietly with a nod.  
I shook my head. "They cannot do this. It is totally unacceptable to take away somebody's house. I came to Easton to start a new life. Billings is my home. It's where my life pretty much began. We can't-"  
"Reed!" Noelle shouted, her eyes rimmed with tears. "It's done."  
I held back my tears. This could not happen. We had just gained Billings back, and now it's gone. I was back to the beginning now. Back to level one, back to being on the lowest level of social class. It finally hit me. It was officially done.


End file.
